This I don't doubt. I'd rather have a dollar today than a dollar tomorrow. It's that this family applied such a steep discount factor that is problematic.
One also shouldn't think of the discount factor just in terms of dollars spent. We can compare the pleasure today of drinking Pepsi, smoking, etc. with the probable pain later associated with losing one's home, etc. How many units of future pain is that Pepsi worth?
One also shouldn't think of the discount factor just in terms of dollars spent. We can compare the pleasure today of drinking Pepsi, smoking, etc. with the probable pain later associated with losing one's home, etc. How many units of future pain is that Pepsi worth?